Close to perfection

Quote: Where are these islands?
...Read More >The Cook Islands are a group of fifteen tiny islands in the Pacific Ocean, north-east of New Zealand. Although there are only fifteen islands and they are all quite tiny they are spread over 2.2 million square kilometres of ocean. The islands are divided into two groups: the Southern Cook Islands, and the Northern Cook Islands. We visited two of the Southern islands, Raratonga and Aitutaki and these are a good 45 minute flight apart from each other.

Useful information for visitors:
Visas aren't needed for a stay of up to31 days, only valid passports, proof of onward travel and booked accommodation.
Time Zone: GMT/UTC -9
Electricity: 240V ,50Hz and two pin flat plugs are used like Australia and NZ


A potted history:
The Cook Islands were from 1888, a British Dominion but they were annexed by New Zealand on 7th October 1900. However since 1903 the Cooks Islands have been independent but remain under New Zealand's governance, although a Cook Islands Legislative Council was elected in 1946.

In April 1965, the first elections were held and a government led by Albert Henry was formed. The islands are self-governing in association with New Zealand. This is a unique relationship and all Cook Islanders have an automatic right New Zealand citizenship as well as their own nationality.

These islands are Polynesian in their culture and it is believed that the first people landed on Raratonga in 800AD coming from what is today French Polynesia. It is also said that the first of the proud Maori people left from Raratonga for the shores of New Zealand in the 5th century AD.

Europeans first noticed these islands in 1595 when a Spanish explorer, Alvaro de Mendana made note of them. The British first sighted Pukapuka in 1764 and then the infamous Captain Bligh landed his ship the HMS Bounty on Aitutaki in 1798. 1821 saw the arrival of the first Christian missionaries whose influence spread rapidly throughout the Cook Islands. Fortunately the islanders did manage to keep a good many of their own traditions despite their conversion to Christianity. They did however drop their cannibalism which was probably a good thing for the missionaries.

Language spoken:
Although English is the main language of communication , Cook Islands Mãori or Maori Kuki Airani is becoming more widely spoken and has been our official language since 2003. Cook Island Maori is also referred to as ‘Te reo Ipukarea’ or "the language of the Ancestral Homeland’.

Raratonga
Raratonga is the most populated of the islands and it is the centre of the government as the Parliament Building is in Avarua, the capital city of Raratonga and the Cook Islands too. The International Airport is also on Raratonga and from here flights go daily to the other islands in the group.

The island is tiny and I thought as we were coming in to land ‘I hope the pilot doesn’t miss it!’ It is only a tiny 20 miles in circumference and has an area of 26 square miles. We drove around it in under three hours stopping at any site of interest on the way. Driving is all 30mph and there are very few cars as most people use scooters and motor bikes. Our car that we hired was ‘interesting’ I might get round to writing a review at some time!

From the moment you land you are made to feel welcome. The airport is quite tiny and fairly basic but everything seemed to work efficiently. We were met and taken to our hotel in a mini bus with little fuss and that is what you want after a long journey really.

You don’t really need a car on the island as the bus is quite good but we wanted to explore a bit further so we did hire one for a day. There is one main "ring" road that follows the coast. In some places there is also a secondary ring road slightly further inland but as the interior is so mountainous there is no road across the island.

There is a great bus service on the island which goes around the island clockwise and anti clockwise and there are bus stops all along the route and sometimes people were dropped off in between as well. I can’t remember how much the fares were but not much at all and we used it a few times to get into Avarua. It did seem to be mainly tourists using the bus when we were there but there were a few locals. They seemed to use their scooters and double up on those.

As you drive around the island there are several places of interest to try and find. Some were easier than others. We spent quite some time hunting for the different Stone remnants of the Marae which were ancient open places of worship of the Polynesian culture. We found some stones but we were not sure if these were the right stones as there was no notice to say what they were. We only had a map to go on and this was fairly simple but we enjoyed looking for them anyway.
One rather sad sight was a huge development by the Sheraton group which lay disused and left empty. This was built prior to the financial collapse in the 1990s and looks as though not much will be happening with this at all. It seems rather a waste and we felt it could be made into apartments for local people rather than just left to fall down.

A little further down this road is the house where the Queen’s representative lives but all we could see was a flag and a simple sign with a nice tropical garden. I should think they are queuing for this plum job in the consul offices as this has to be one of the nicest most welcoming islands in the world.

Continuing round the island we get to Vaka village where there is a really beautiful CICC church where the priest here in 1827 - 1854 spent years translating many works of literature into Maori. Across from this beautiful building is a small park and a sheltered harbor where legend has it that seven canoes left here in 1350 to make their way to New Zealand. The names of the seven canoes are carved on a monument in this car park beside the shore.

We drove along the inner road for some of our trip as we were looking for rural scenery and local plants like taro growing. Some of the houses were just so pretty and everyone took such pride in their gardens it was a really lovely drive. We felt quite comfortable stopping to take photos when we found something that we found interesting as everyone was so friendly and smiley. This inner road is said to be an ancient road, the oldest in Polynesia. It has a coral foundation laid by chief Toi over a thousand years ago.

We were able to go inland as far as Wigmore’s waterfall. This stream and falls are quite pretty but despite being lathered in deet we were still getting bothered by mossies so we didn’t hand around too long. It is possible to walk into the interior of the island along a track from here but we ran back to the car to avoid being eaten alive and continued our driving exploration instead.

We thoroughly explored everything on our list of things to see in our guide book plus hunting out things we wanted to see like the farming areas and taro growing so we returned our little Nissan Micra cabriolet car to the rental office and walked back across the road to our lovely little hotel to spend the rest of the day by the pool.

Raratonga may not be the most exciting island for sightseeing but the atmosphere and welcome feeling you get as you explore the place more than makes up for this.
Compared to Tahiti this island is so much better value. Food and drink cost are reasonable and most of the sights around the island are free. You don’t feel like you are being ripped off at every turn here. The island is beautiful and despite the fact it was raining a lot of the time we were here, it was hard to not be impressed by the luxurious foliage, white sand beaches, the lovely well kept tropical gardens and the genuine happy welcoming faces of the local people who are justifiably proud of their culture and their country.

If you can only visit one South Sea Island then this or Samoa are probably the most unspoilt and certainly much cheaper and far more attractive than Tahiti so I would recommend either of these two islands.

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Quote: Avarua, the capital city of Raratonga and the whole Cook Islands:
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Avarua has to one of the smallest capital cities I have visited but when you realize the entire population of the island is only 14,000 by comparison, Derby has a population 0f 220,000 it is not that surprising. The city had a few restaurants, shops, small supermarkets and two banks plus a tourist office but not a lot more.

On Saturdays there is a great market called Punanganui which we spent about three hours wandering around. It sold everything from cloths, local food, fruit and vegetables as well as local crafts, pictures, fabrics and the famous South Sea Island black pearls . As well there were several areas where people and sang and performed local dances which was most entertaining. It was quite crowded but so crowded that you were not able to see the performances or get to look at the stalls. The little local bus the circuits the island dropped you off at the market and then you crossed the road to get the bus back to our hotel.

There was a tiny museum housed in the same building as a very basic library. We did go in but when we had a peek there was so little in there and we had to pay so we decide we wouldn’t bother as it really was pretty pathetic as museums go. More interesting we found outside three volcanic stone sculptures with a number of carved boards depicting various legends/tales of the islands.

Not far from the museum was the university and then coming back a bit more into the city we came across an old rather run down building which turned out to be the "Para O Tane Palace" the place where Makea Takau, a Paramount Chief, signed the treaty accepting the Cook Islands status as a British protectorate in 1888. This is now rather uncared for and considered unsafe so you can’t go in but the gardens are really rather lovely to walk through.

At the corner of this road is the Cook Island Christian Church and the Papeiha Stone, named for the first person to preach the Christian gospel in the Cook IslandsThe church itself dates from 1853 and it does have quite a nice graveyard with a number of missionaries and Cook Island chiefs buried there.

As we meet the main road again we notice another lovely looking building which is called the Beachcomber gallery. We while we were sitting enjoying our coffee that this was originally built by the London Missionary Society as a Sunday School hall and has been done up and converted into this rather lovely local art gallery, shops and a café..
Walking back in Avarua you come across the seven-in-One Coconut Tree, a group of trees growing in a perfect circle of their own. It is reputed that they've grown from the same seed.This group of trees in just near the main roundabout in Avarua.


Just off shore there is the remains of the SS Matai, owned by the Union Steam Ship Co. This unfortunate ship was carrying a load of Model T cars when it was wrecked on Dec. 24, 1916. I’m not sure if they got all the cars off and from the shore there really isn’t much to see but it is now a popular spot for snorkeling and diving.

If you want to see the House of Parliament then you need to drive out of Avarua towards the airport and keep going. This very unimpressive building is just alongside the road which is parallel to runway. This extremely modest House of Parliament fits the peaceful laid back atmosphere of the island and was apparently formerly the hostel for the construction workers of the airport in 1973. Blink and you would miss it.

That is Avarua. A tiny little capital city with a warm heart. There is enough to see and do to fill a morning of sight seeing looking at these things I mentioned. The shops are okay, great if you want to buy some pearls and there are a number of cafes which all look very pleasant. The restaurants also looked great but as we were more than happy with our restaurant on the beach at our hotel we didn't try any of these but we did enjoy our coffee in the Beachcomber Gallery.

So there you are a walk around Avarua on Raratonga.
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Quote: Aitutaki is the second largest of the fifteen Cook islands after Raratonga which is the largest. This magical little island is named by Steve Davey in his book "Unforgettable Places to See Before you Die" so we thought we must see this! We pre-booked this trip before we left the UK with our agents Allways Pacific. I believe we paid about £250 per person but this did include the return flight from Raratonga to Aitutaki which was about 45 minutes each way. It is rather obvious that the Cook Islands are named after Captain Cook who landed there in 1770 but strangely the name was actually given by the Russians, in honour of the great English navigator! This tiny island of Aitutaki has a population of just 2,500 and really there is little industry and almost all its money comes from tourism which fortunately for Aitutaki seems to be booming and growing.
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On the day of our trip we were collected from our hotel and taken to the tiny airport where we checked in for the flight. We were told that they were checking the weather in Aitutaki and would let us know closer to the flight time what the situation there was. At this time it was raining on Raratonga and had been on and off since we had been there. When they called us over we were given the option of going on the trip still despite showers being forecast or having a refund or trying again the next day. We all chose to go; we could have tried the next day but thought we would risk it as it could be worse the next day.

The plane was tiny and seated about 25 passengers. It was all very cosy and the views from the plane were amazing as you approached each island you could clearly see the coral ring around the islands and then the green of the vegetation but very few built up areas on either Aitutaki or Raratonga.

When we landed we were met by our guide Ngaakitai tai Pureariki who was a very proud local trainee archaeologist and he took us to the capital city of which was really not much more than a church , one small shop and a wharf. Aitutaki had been bady hit by a cyclone earlier the year before and there were still a lot of families living in semi destroyed houses but of course the church had been fully restored to its former glory. I cannot understand the logic behind this, why would the church spend the money collected from these people on rebuilding the church rather than helping them get a roof over their heads? They all have to give so much of their money to the church each month you would think that they would get some help at a time like this. I will stop there as I could go on for hours on this subject

Our guide was so enthusiastic about his people and their history that I was quite disappointed when he left us at the boat as I thought he was coming with us. Anyway after a tour of the island with Ngaakita our little group was dropped at the boat and met our boat crew. The boat was like a river launch with open sides and an upper deck too. Our new guide was the captain of the ship and he had help from another three crew members.

We cruised within the coral lagoon so the sea was as clear as glass and very calm. Unfortunately it was a bit overcast for the first part of the trip but despite this the colours of the sea still could not fail to impress. Aitutaki has 22 small islands or islets in the lagoon surrounding the actual island atoll and we visited two of these on our sailing trip.

Our first stop was Akaiami which was previously the island where the original Tasman Empire Air Lines (TEAL which became Air New Zealand) flew huge Solent seaplanes from Auckland to Tahiti via Fiji, Samoa and Aitutaki from 1951-1960. From here, travel to Rarotonga and other islands in the group was only possible by boat. These flying boats stopped to refuel and take a break on Akaiami where the passengers would get off go through the terminal (now a self catering a boutique lodge hotel) enjoy a swim and relax before boarding again to continue their journey.

We were supplied with snorkels, masks and flippers and taken across the small island to the ocean side to snorkel on the reef. However it was very windy and the sea quite rough which made getting in to the sea a challenge as the reef came virtually to the shore. There was also a strong current which meant you had to kick like crazy just to stay still. After 15 minutes we were exhausted so we clambered out, wrapped ourselves in the towels (provided by the tour) and made our way back to the other side which was much calmer and warmer because it was protected from the wind and the sun was trying to come out too.

There was no coral reef inside but the sea was so clear that just by paddling we could see so many smaller fish. We also investigated the original refueling jetty and the hotel although you would but really supposed to go onto the resort as it was private so we just peeked through the trees. This was a true island paradise but not sure I'd like more than a couple of days here as apart from swimming and snorkeling there was nothing to do except appreciate the surroundings.

Leaving Akaiami we sailed on towards One Foot Island spotting a group of turtles on the way. It was so lovely to see them swimming feely around the boat. There is nothing quite like seeing wild animals like this in the natural environment, a really special bonus for us.

We were dropped off by the boat on the sand spit just off One Foot Island and then we walked acroos through the water to the island. This is the classic view you see in all the travel guides on Aitutaki of the sand spit , pale clear shallow waters changing to aqua then a deeper blue and white, white sand. It is magical, stunning and it takes your breath away. It was every penny as I have never seen a beach like this before. After taking lots of photos we walked through the sea up to about our waists and made our way over to One Foot Island for our lunch.

This tiny islet of Motu Tapuaetai or One Foot Island has the world's smallest Post Office and if you take your passport with you and pay about $250 NZ you can have you passport stamped with the One Foot Island stamp. The same building is where our crew prepared and presented our delicious lunch of salads and barbequed fish or steak.
You could buy drinks from the crew so we bought a couple of local beers to sup with our lunch while we looked out over the lagoon through the palm trees and the pouring rain!

After lunch the rain lessened and we decide that we needed to make the most of our time here so we donned our masks and snorkels and walked to the part of the island nearest the sea, once we were in the water the current took us back towards out boat so very little effort was needed. There was no coral but the fish were plentiful, colourful and very friendly. We had a couple of very chummy Puffer fish following us. I have only just discovered that they are extremely poisonous but they were most friendly to us, no sign of puffing and I had no intention of walking on them or even touching them so no harm done. It was a very special experience having fish swimming all around you just feet from the shore and usually something you can experience only when diving which I don't fancy at all.

Sadly after our swim it was time to make our way back across the lagoon to be collected ready for our return flight to Raratonga. The tiny airport has a tiny café and that is about all, one check in desk no security at all. We had been serenaded in on our arrival and the same man sang for our departure. Apparently he meets and greets every flight in and out of Aitutaki, such a charming touch which you can't imagine seeing at many places around the world.

Once again we were able to enjoy the island from the air with views from our little plane. This was an unforgettable day and well worth every penny. If you are in this area then I would certainly recommend the Cook Islands and a trip to Aitutaki. Read Less

Quote: This lovely restaurant and bar is 'Right on the Beach' and is part of the Manuia Beach Hotel.
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We had left Tahiti very early with no breakfast and all were given out our Air Tahiti flight was a cup of tea and a glass of water so by the time we arrived here we were starving so we left our unpacking and went in search of something to eat.

The restaurant was called ‘Right on the Beach’ and indeed it was right on the beach with sand as the floor. The roof was metal and again but covered in decorative coconut leaves, the wall were only to table height and then it was open with plastic blinds that were lowered when the weather made it necessary. It was absolutely lovely, homely but with the rather exotic element as it was on the beach with a view of the sea and the reef beyond where we watched the waves breaking before they calmed to slip in quietly onto the beach. The views of the sunsets here were some of the best I have ever seen.

The waiter was just the most charming, (somewhat effeminate person) he called us "my dears " and nothing was too much trouble. He chatted to us when he wasn’t busy but was efficient while still being friendly when he was very busy. We loved the restaurant so much that we didn’t bother going to any others as we felt we couldn’t better the food or the service.

They offered different ‘experience’ nights. We did go to a couple. One was the seafood buffet which was less than £20 a head and included a glass of wine per person. The platter when it came had so much seafood on it from oysters, prawns, scallops, fish, some fried and some stuff was cold. It was a really good portion with salad and had a great variety so we could have a taste of quite a few different things.

The other night we attended was the ‘island night’ which included a buffet based on local ingredients and cooking and then a show which was the best we experienced on all four islands we visited in the Pacific. This was partly because it was a much smaller venue so we were pretty close but mainly because there was a commentary which explained the dance or the music prior to it happening which gave us much more of an idea what was supposed to be going on in the dance. They also explained the different drums and played each separately so that we could hear what each did before they played together. Not only was the performance excellent but the food was delicious and plentiful and the drinks were a reasonable price too. We met a couple who were staying at another place on the island and they had come specifically for the island night at our hotel as they had heard it was a good one and I can see why as it was good and we managed to make a quick exit just as they mentioned audience participation which is something I do NOT do.

On other nights we enjoyed snacks or the a la carte menu after the wonderful ’Happy Hour and a half’ which went from 5.30 to 7pm and during this time you got two drinks for the price of one which included some very exciting cocktails which I took full advantage of. The other great value discount that we availed ourselves of was the 10 drinks for $55NZ (about £22 at the time) and each time we bought a drink they signed a square on our paper. This was also a great idea which we used at times other than the Happy Hour as it didn’t include cocktails!

This was a lovely comfortable welcoming place to eat or drink. Nothing was too much trouble for the staff and they were all so very friendly and helpful that they made this a place that we chose to eat every meal while we were in Raratonga as no other place seemed as nice.
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Quote: MANUIA BEACH BOUTIQUE HOTEL
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We stayed 5 nights in this rather charming little hotel and it cost us £69 per person per night including a tropical breakfast.

We were met at the airport and given a lovely lei each then taken to the hotel which was only about 10 minutes from the airport in Raratonga, Cook Islands. When we turned into the driveway I was a bit surprised as we seemed to be heading towards a rather scruffy looking hut which had a board outside advertising motor scooter rentals. As the previous hotels we had stayed at were all rather up market I was a little hesitant. We got out of the mini bus and were pointed towards the scruffy hut with advertising for scooter hire as the reception.

We were expected, welcomed and given our key. One of the staff members took us to our room and explained the safe, the air conditioning which need the key fob in the control before operating the remote and he also showed us the large container of filtered water in the fridge that we just had to take to the restaurant any time we needed it topped up. In another sliding cupboard he pointed out the kettle and tea/coffee making stuff as well as in yet another cupboard some insect coils, fly spray and an air freshener spray.
The room was large and very airy and light as there were windows on three sides. The net curtains gave day privacy and there were proper dark curtains for night privacy. In the room we had a double bed and a single as well as a couple of wicker chairs and a wicker glass topped table. Also very handy were two of those folding suitcase stands which you could also use to air clothes! The room was tiled on the floor and the bedspread was a Cook Island patterned blue and white bedspread which was fresh and bright.

We had a safe which was meant to be locked with a code but we never managed so we used the key they provided instead. Also in the room was a decent sized ward robe and drawers for clothes storage plus two bedside tables and good bright reading lights. All in all it was clean, fresh and all you really needed though there was no iron or board provided and as this was our last few days I didn’t ask for one as I did no washing at all.

The bathroom was fairly small with just a shower sink and toilet, not luxurious but did the job. The toiletries provided were a shampoo/condition and soap no body lotion or other extras but the shampoo was actually very nice and I did use extra conditioner but it did make my hair nice and soft.

We also had a lovely little veranda with two chairs and a table with a roof so we could sit out there in the shade and enjoy the view of the gardens. We were not lucky enough to have sea view here although there were rooms with a sea view available I suspect they cost a bit more.

As we walked towards our room I was getting more concerned as the coconut leaved roofs looked very shabby, however I realised the coconut leaves were only decoration and the roofs were actually solid. I had visions of leaking roofs and was getting quite anxious. All my worries were unfounded though as this hotel proved to be a little gem.

Obviously we were right on the beach but unfortunately the weather while we were here in the Cook Islands on Raratonga was not that great so I didn’t going the sea at all as it was too chilly for me. My husband did get in but only long enough to pose for a photo to prove that he had! The sea was however beautifully clear and we did enjoy a number of walks along the sandy beach in both directions from our hotel.

The pool was quite small but as the hotel had a " No Children" policy it was large enough for a dip. It was an infinity pool with a wooden deck around it which had chairs and tables as an extension of the restaurant/bar. On the beach were a number of sun beds and there were also a few roofed shaded open huts with sun beds or you could use the surrounding palm trees for shade. This wasn’t a problem while we were there as it was cloudy or raining a lot of the time which was a real shame as I did rather fancy a lie on a sunny beach to relax and prepare for the journey home.

For internet access you had to pay the person in reception and they gave you a code to access a New Zealand company internet provider. I am trying to remember but I think I paid about £10 for each session which was a given number of bytes. I hate that system as very email you open uses up a few bytes. Anyway it did allow me to check us in on the plane and clear a few emails and read a few reviews but not a lot else. I could also access this from my room which was the good part of this and it was stupidly expensive but just a bit more than I wanted to spend just to read a few reviews and clear my emails.

All in all I would definitely recommend this lovely little boutique hotel for anyone who wants a hotel with no children which is peaceful, very friendly and welcoming with large, clean and light rooms. It was not a luxury hotel with slick features but it had a very quaint charm about it which we loved and the service was second to none in my view.

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